Antirefilling stopper for bottles.



F. H. CHAPMAN. ANTIREFILLING STOPPER FOR BOTTLES.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 8, I914.

Z 16. Ufimpmczm w @ss THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D. c.

FRED H. CHAPMAN, 0F WINCHESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

ANTIREFILLING STOPIER FOR BOTTLES.

mamas.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed December 8, 1914. Serial No. 876,057.

To all whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, FRED H. CHAPMAN, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Winchester, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Antirefilling Stoppers for Bottles, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to a device adapted to be inserted in the neck of a bottle and constructed so asto permit the liquld contents of'the bottle to be poured out, and to prevent a second filling of the bottle.

The invention particularly consists in a device which, for the purposes of this description, I may call a stopper, adapted to be assembled in unit form and to be inserted in the neck of any bottle approximating a certain size, which stopper containsfla valve constructed and operating according to the principles of the valve shown in m prior Patent No. 1,092,559 granted April 1914:. A further object of the inventionis to produce a stopper of the-character indicated which can be made in quantities with absolute uinformity and without anysuch individual variations as occur in articles made of materials such as glass, porcelain, etc., and which at the same time will fit the neck of any bottle of approximately the size for which the stopper is designed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional view representing the neck of a bottle in upright position with my improved novel anti-refilling stopper in place therein. Fig. 2 is a view of Fig. 1 inverted. Fig. 3 is an elevation of the inclosing shell creasing of my improved anti-refilling stopper. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 5 is'a plan view of an abutment member which coacts with the valve to close the same. Fig. 6 is a plan view of a battle which co-acts withthe abutment member to prevent insertion of any instrument capable of holding the valve from its seat. r

The anti-refilling device or stopper in which my present invention is embodied consists of a number of parts assembled into a self-contained unit having substantially the form e-Xternally'ofa cylindrical plug adapted to fit suflicientlyclosely the neck of a bottle and provided with a packing to make a liquid tight contact with the walls of such neck. In construction the device includes a shell 10 of generally cylindrical form-and having portions of different diameters,

This shell is preferably of thin metal. In the part havingjthe larger diameter, which is made of a size to fit approximately the interior of a bottle neck there is formed a groove 11,the material of the shell being displaced inwardly so that the groove ap pears on the outside of the shell, while the displaced metal provides an internal shoulder 12. ()ne end of the shell is given an inwardly tapering conical formation as shown at 13, so as to form on the inside of such portion a valve seat adapted-to cooperate with a spherically formed valve. A suitable seat may, however, be made by inwardly displacing thewalls of the shell on all sides at some other point than the extreme end. Within the shell is contained a valve 14: having a spherical outer surface which waste with the inner surface of the valve seat 13. This valve is preferably hollow to reduce its Patented May 2, 191d.

weight, being made as a polar zone or segment of a hollow phere. The diameter of the rim of thesegment is greater than the opening within the valve seat. Connected with the valve is a stem 15 having an enlarged "head 16 of which the outer end is formed as a blunt cone 17. The cone 17 and spherical valvell are coaxial, and the enlarged end 16 is solid and therefore relatively very heavy as compared with the light and hollow shell-like valve 14:. A convenient and preferred mode of construction 'of this valve is the following: The valve proper may be made by forming a piece of sheet metahsuch as aluminum, or other non-corrosive and su'fliciently firm metal, into the pressure, and the conical end of the stem may be formed of a similar. material in a similar way. ,The valvefproperiand cone are then placed in amold and molten. metal desired form between dies under powerful' is. poured into the mold so as to form the i stem 15, the mold being of course shaped to give. the proper form to the stem and .to enable the plastic metal of the stem to become interlocked with the formed metal of the valve and the cone. I may use an alloy of tin and lead for the plastic metal in mak ing the stem. Suitable proportions for the alloy are one-quarter tin. and three-quarters lead but these proportions may. be varied. So also may the metals of which the stem and the valve proper are made be varied.

. It is to be understood that the foregoing description of materials and method of. man

ufactuie employed in connection withthe valve is not exclusive and is not intended as a limitation of theform, material, or method of manufacture of the valve. The size and shape of the valve 14 enables the same to make liquid tight contact with the valve seatin any one of various positions, as well when the valve stem is inclined to the axis of the valve seat as when itis in 'or'parallel to such axis. l s

.The inwardly offset shoulder 12 of the casing forms a stopor rest for a combined abutment and bafiie member'18. Said member is adisk having a rim 19, which bears againstthe shoulder 12 and has its central part 20 offset from the plane of the rim. The inner peripheryof the rim' 19, which is also' the junction between the rim and the cylindricalweb. or wall'joining such offset part with'the rim, forms an annular reaction shoulder 21 adapted 'to cO-act with the cone 17; In making the shell the shoulder 12v is putat' such a distance from the reduced. end

that is,'froni ,the valve seat, that the reaction'shoulder 21,'w,hen placed in the shell, will be at exactly the proper distance from the valve seatv in order to co-act with the valve in the, manner hereinafter described.

llp onithe offset center 20 of the abutment member is laid a baflie 23, which is a segnientof disk having notches 24 cut in opposite sides and havlng a hole 25 at one side of its center. This hole receives a strltick up hump 26 on the offset part 20 of .the abutment member and causes the baflie to keep its desired relation to the rim 19 of the abutment member, this relation being such that: the unmutilated part of the bafiie overlies notches 27 in the rim 19 of the ends of, each patch 2e are abutment member. .At each side or end of the notchesl273 the rim 19 carriesl upturned l'rig s2'8; while on the baffle at the opposite down-turned lugs These lugs, which cross the space between the ,shell and .theiofiset part of the abutment member, guard the notches in the bafiles23 and 19, and make it practically impossible for a wire'or tool of any sort to be as ed; through the notches and between the valve and the seat, since the notches are out of axialalinement; as, before stated. After theb'aliie 23, has been put in placethe edge o f' the casing, is spun or bent over the edge 7 of thebaflletforming a locking lip 30, shown '1 and 2, which holds the baffle firmlv against the abutment member,and holds the latter against the shoulder 12.

I As previously mentioned a part of the shell has a diameter considerably smaller than theinterior diameter of the bottle neck.

This part is shown at 31. The reduction in si'ze of the shellprovides an annular space pted to receive'a packing of cord or other material suitable for the purpose. The

packing ring is shown at 32 in Figs. 1 and 2.

The anti-refilling stopper is locked in place by an expansion locking ring 33, which may be of any ordinary or other construction, and isemployed in the usual way to lie partly in the groove 11 of the casing and partly in a groove formed in the interior of the bottle neclc The groove 11 is deep enough so that the ring may be contracted before the device is placed in the bottle far enoughto enter th ebottle neck allowing the stopper to be pushed into the bottle until thejring arrives at the groove in the neck, when it expands and enters such groove.

The valve stem'is made of such a length that the tipof the cone 17 always projects into the open central part of the abutment member, and the surface of the cone may hear at some point against the reaction shoulder 21. Theconical surface acts as a wedge or cam to force the valve against its seat when the bottle lies on its side, and indeed until it is so far inverted as to be almost up side down. The preponderance of weight in the butt end of the valve stem acting through the cam surface on the end of the stem against the reaction shouldercauses the valve to be thus wedged against the seat after the bottle has been tilted beyond the horizontal position, that iswhen the mouth of the bottle is below the body of the same. hen the bottle has been tilted beyond the critical angle, the entire valve will drop as show'n in Fig. 2 until the cone enters the central opening or cavity of the abutment member as far as the width of the opening permits and the valve then becomes separated from its seat. The critical angle referred to is that between the axis of the bottle and the horizol'ital when the bottle has been so far tilted or over-turned that the conical face on the. end of the, valve stem begins to slide across the abutment shoulder toward the mouth of the bottle, and is not reached until the bottle has been tilted beyond the point at which the under side of this conical surface becomes horizontal.

Among the advantages which flow from the principles hereinbefore set forth are the following: The stopper may be made in large quantities by automatic machinery at comparatively small cost, and all the stoppers of the same size are duplicates of one another and adapted to fit any bottle neck of one standard size. The stopper is independ ent of the variations in size and shape from the standard of individual bottle necks, by reason of the packing ring or band 32, which adapts itself to all such irregularities, and thus anyof the stoppers of a certain size is adapted to make a liquid tight fit in any hottle of approximately the corresponding size. The valve and seat being made of metal by diescan be made liquid tight in each stopper withoutspecial operations, such as are required Where-a valve seat is cast or blown in a bottle. The abutment memberand valve seat being in the same casing are at an invariable distance apart, which is the proper distance for the best operation of the valve, and there is no possibility of this distance being changed, as there is in constructions where the seat for the valve and the abutment for the valve-closing device are independent or separable. The stopper being made as a unit may be shipped from the maker to the customer in assembled condition ready to be slipped into a bottle. The stoppers shipped in any lot may be taken out as they come and placed in bottles without any especial fitting and without becom ing disassembled or disarranged, and partic ularly without requiring skilled labor to put them in. The use of the stopper requires no modification in the construction of the bottle itself with the sole exception of the shallow groove on the inside of the neck which receives the locking ringf Such a groove can be readily formed in the bottle in the process of making it, and can almost as readily be formed in bottles already made.

What I claim and desire to secure by Let tel-s Patent is:

1. An anti-refilling stopper comprising a metal shell having an internal valve seat and having a lateral internal shoulder, an abut-- ment member set against said shoulder, means holding said abutment member rigidly in place, said member having a reaction shoulder, and a spherically formed valve coacting with said valve seat and having a stem with a conical outer end co-acting with said reaction shoulder. a a

2. An anti-refilling device comprising a shell made in one piece with one-end drawn toward its aXis tovform an internal valve seat and having between its ends an inwardly ofiset annular portion forming a shoulder within the shell and a groove on the outside of the shell, a combined abutment and baflle member placed in. the shell abutting againstsaid shoulder, a cooperating battle member set on said abutment member, the edge of the shell being headed over and interlocked with the edgeof said cooperating member, and a valve co-a'cting with said valve seat and having a stem formed with a conical wedge portion engaged with said abutment'member.

3. In a non-refillable bottle, in combination with a valve and a valve seat, a baffle member consisting of a. disk having a notch in its rim and having its central partoilset from the plane of such rim, means for supporting said member, a cooperating baffle consisting of a disk lying upon the offset part ofthe first disk and having a notch in its rim, and means for preventing removal of the cooperating bafiie, the disks being so placed. that the notch of one is overlaid by the nonmutilatedpart of the other.

i. In a non-refillable bottle, in combination with a valve and a-valve seat, a baflie member consisting of a disk having a notch in its rim and having its central part offset from the plane of such rim, and a cooperating baflie consisting of a'disk lying upon the ofi'set'part of the first disk and having a notch in its rim, the disks being so placed thatthe notch of one is overlaid by the nonmutilated part ofthe other, and each disk having lugs at each end ofits notch extending toward the other disk. I J

5. An anti-refilling bottle stopper including a shell having an internalshoulder, a combined abutment member and bafiie made as a disk set in the shell with its rim resting on said shoulder and its central part ofiset so as to provide a central recess and a reactionshoulder bounding said recess, the rim of said member having an opening to permit outflow of liquid, a cooperating baffle disk lying across the oiiset part of said member within the end of the shell and having a peripheral opening out of direct I alinement withthe I opening of said member, an in wardly directed flange on the shell overlying the rim of said baflie disk retaining the same in place, a valve seat in the shell at the side ofthe abutment member opposite to the side on which the cooperating battle is located, and a spherical valve cooperating with said seat, said valve having a stem projecting into the recess of the abutment member and formed with a conicalwedge surface on its end arranged to bear on the said reaction shoulder, v

6. A. bottle stopper adapted to permit outflow of the contents of the bottle and prevent a second filling of the same, comprising a tubular metal shell made in one i piece from end to end having its inner end contracted to form a valve seat and havlng an lnternal bead between 1ts ends,

such bead forming a shoulder on the inside of the shell and a grooie on the outside adapted to receive a lock or ring, a com-- bined baffle and abutment member located in said shell. and bearing at its periphery on said-bead, said member having an annular shoulder within its periphery, means for securing said member in the shell and a valve arranged to fit said valve seat and having a stem extending toward said member, the stem being formed with an end face projecting across the plane of said a-nnulanshoulder and adapted to bear against the annular shoulder.

7. A stopper for preventing filling of a bottle, comprising a generally cylindrical shellrhaving a portion near one end of reduced diameter to provide a space adapted to receive packing and being further re- .duced indiameter at the extreme end to with an internal bead which provides a shoulder-on the interior. and a groove on the exterior-of the shell.

I bearing against said shoulder and having a' notch' inits rim and upturned lugs at the opposite edges of said'notch, the disk having an axially oflset central. portion which forms a cavity and gan annular shoulder surrounding said cavity, and a complemen-tal baiile disk bearmg on said ofi'set .portion and having in its periphery a notch and lugs ateach end of-said notch pro ectingftoward the first-named bafile, the notch of, one bafile being out of axial alinement with the. notch of the other battle, and the shell having an inwardly turned-lip overlying the rimof the second baffle and looking the'two bafilesin place.

9. In an anti-refilling stopper, a shell having an internal shoulder, a combined bafiie and abutment member, comprising a disk. fitting in the shell and its periphery bearing against s'aidshoulder and having aynotch in its rim and upturned lugs at the opposite edges of said notch, the disk having an axially ofiset central portion whichlforms a cavity and an annular shoulder surrounding sai'dcavity, and a comple mental baflie disk bearingon" said ofiset portion and having in its periphery a nptoh andlugs ateach end of said notch pr ecting toward the first-named baflle, the notch of one battle being out of axial alinen ent with the notch of the other bafiie and said baffles. having complemental abutments for placing and holding one relatively to the other with their notches-in such relation, and the shell having an inwardly turned lip overlying the rim of the second baflie and locking the two battles in place.

10. An anti-refilling bottle stopper comprising a shell having an internal valve seat and adapted to fit within the neck of a bottle, a valve in said shell coeperating with said seat, and battle means for preventing insertion of an instrument capable of holding said valve away from the seat, sald bafile' means comprising two disks fitting within said shell between the end thereof and the valve, the inner disk being centrally ofi'set in a manner such as to form an annular wall, and the outer disk being placed upon said o'fiset portion, each disk having a notch in its peripheral part and being so arranged that an un-notched part of its rim overlies the notch ofthe other disk, and

the shell having means for retaining said disks in place.

11-. An anti-refilling bottle stopper comprising a shell having an internal valve. seat and adapted to fit within the neck of a bottle, :1 alve in said shell coeperating with said seat, and battle means for preventing insertion of an instrument capable of holdingsaid valve away from the seat. said baflle. means comprising two disks fitting within saidshell between the end thereof and the valve, the inner disk being centrally offset in a manner such as to form an anii-ular wall, and the outer disk being placed upon said ol'l'set portion, each disk having a notch in its peripheral part and being so arranged that an un-notched part of its rim overlies the notch of the other disk, and each disk having lugs flanking its notch and extending toward the other disk. said lugs coiiperating with said annular wall :to prevent passage of an instrument by the disks into proximity with the valve.

12. An anti-refilling bottle stopper comprising. a shell having a valve seat and being adapted to fit the neck of a bottle, a valve in said shell coiiperating with said seat, and baflle means obstructing the shell between the valve and that portion of: the shell which lies nearest the mouth oi the bottle, said baflle means comprising two sheet metal disks set within the shell and oneof them having its center axially oflset and having. in its rim a notch, and with integral lip-turned wings or lugs at each end of said notch, and the second disk being placed against the offset center of the first disk and having a notch in its periphery flanked by integral up-turned wings which project toward the rim of the first disk, the said disks being so placed that their notches are out of alinement.

13. In combination with a bottle closing valve having a wedge stem, :1 combined bai fie and abutment for said wedge stein comprising a disk having its center offset to provide a cavity at the side of the disk toward the 'alve stem and a reaction shoulder surrounding said cavity, the said oli'set center atthe other side of the disk serving as a spacing element, and a. second bafile disk bearing against such spacing element. the disks having passages respectively out of 'ali nement and located between their respective peripheries and the said the first-named disk.

14. A bottle stopper adapted to prevent refilling of a bottle, comprising a cylindri- *al shell adapted to fit the neck of a bottle and having a section of reduced diameter. an annular packing surrounding said reduced section, the balance of the shell being adapted to fit closely within a bottle neck and having an encircling groove, a spring locking ring contained in said groove adapted to expand into locking engagement with the bottle neck, a portion oi the shell being reduced to form a tapered alve seat, a spherically formed valve complemental to said valve seat having a stem with a weight oilset center oi ed Wedge-like end, and an abutment m0unted in said shell in position to coiiperate with said Wedge-like end, said Wedge-like end and said abutment being relativelydisposed In testimony whereof i have aflixed my signature, in presence of two Witnesses.

FRED H. CHAPMAN.

Where they Will be brought into engagement Witnesses: whenever the stopper is tipped from up- ARTHUR H. BROWN, right position. P. W. PEZZETTI.

maples of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Gmmmimmlenew M Wntentnt,

wellington, D. G. 

